Many Will Mark International Plain Language Day Oct. 13 With Examples Of Clarity

2nd annual celebration of advances in clear communication and design for consumers and the public

Vancouver (I-Newswire) October 2, 2012 - International Plain Language Day (IPLDay.org)

October 13, 2012 will be observed all over the world using social media to create a virtual conference.

Events and contests are being organized locally, but celebrated globally. Last year, events took place in South Africa, Canada, the U.S., Sweden, Portugal, New Zealand, and Argentina.

Organizers are asking associations to endorse IPLDay October 13 and plan their own events to mark the day. The main event is a virtual conference on the IPLDay channels on YouTube and SlideShare. A running list of planned events will be posted on IPLDay.org. We have already learned of events planned across Canada and in New Zealand and South Africa.

“Vancouver and Calgary have proclaimed International Plain Language Day October, 13” said Cheryl Stephens, a leader in the movement and an expert in plain legal language. “We are hoping people in other cities will ask their mayors to do the same.

“October 13 is a significant date in the world of plain language,” said Stephens. “We chose this date - the anniversary of the US Plain Writing Act - to celebrate hard-won achievements in many countries and the talented people who are making information materials understandable and usable."

“These days LinkedIn’s Plain Language Advocates Group that I host has over 2,000 members." added Stephens.

"We started the international plain language network and conferencing in the early 90s using only email and web pages," said Kate Harrison Whiteside, a social media and plain language consultant. "Now, we’ll use the social web to get world-wide support for this important movement.”

Around the world, progress has been made in recognizing the public demand for and organizational benefits of clearer information. Plain language is now on the agenda for the health, legal, government, banking, social, education and business sectors.

On October 13, 2012, people and organizations will be hosting events online, in offices, and on the streets to mark their support for putting readers first in communication by using plain language.

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IPLDAY Links

Contacts
Cheryl Stephens, email@cherylstephens.com 1-604- 739-6884
Kate Harrison Whiteside, kate@keyadvice.net 1-25-521-0454

Website
International Plain Language IPLDay.org

IPLDAY 2012 October 13 Virtual Conference Links
IPLDAY YouTube Videos - www.youtube.com/user/IPlainLanguageDay/videos
IPLDAY SlideShare - www.slideshare.net/iplday

Likes at IPLD Facebook Page
Twitter Hashtag- #iplday

Background documents and graphics are available at http://tinyurl.com/IPLD-MediaResources